Ptah Temple West Gate

The Ptah Temple West Gate is among the few remnants of the vast Ptah Temple complex. The Gate was one of at least four huge entranceways to the complex, but it is the only one that is still visible.

Today you can see this structure as a ruin containing fragments of massive columns and colossal statues. These provide a tantalizing glimpse of the Temple’s past glory.

Built by Ramesses II, the Temple was one of the main places of worship in ancient Egypt and the largest and most important site in Memphis. At its peak, the Temple covered an area roughly four times bigger than the Great Pyramid at Giza and five times that of the Colosseum in Rome.

It was used for over 1000 years. Here, royalty and priests would enter into the heart of the Ptah Temple. They would live, worship and lead festivals inside this sacred space.

Each of the Temple’s four monumental gates are thought to have been guarded by gigantic statues of Ramesses II. Two almost complete examples of these survive today – one in the Memphis Open Air Museum.